Gestational Diabetes: Caring for Women During and After Pregnancy

"Gestational Diabetes:Caring for Women During and After Pregnancy." Effective Health Care. AHRQ, Aug. 2009. Web. 18 Aug. 2010. http://www.hopkinscme.edu/uploads/staticfiles/GDM_Clinician.pdf.
  • "Approximately 7 percent of pregnancies in the United States are complicated by gestational diabetes." Pg.1

  • "Gestational diabetes can lead to neonatal hypoglycemia, respiratory distress syndrome, and fetal macrosomia." Pg.1

  • "Larger infants have increased rates of birth trauma, shoulder ystocia, and cesarean delivery. Current guidelines recommend adequate glycemic control as a strategy to decrease these maternal and fetal complications." Pg.1

  • "Most women who have gestational diabetes can successfully control their blood sugar with diet and exercise. However, some will need oral diabetes medication or insulin. Gestational diabetes is not just a complication of pregnancy. It is a riskfactor for type 2 diabetes." Pg.1

  • "While only about 5 percent of women who have gestational diabetes develop type 2 diabetes within 6 months of delivery,about 60 percent will develop type 2 diabetes within 10 years." Pg.1

  • "Several organizations recommend testing women with a history of gestational diabetes for type 2 diabetes at a postpartum visit and then following them over time." Pg.1

  • "Women with gestational diabetes who have a higher prepregnancy body mass index (BMI) or who gain more weight during pregnancy are more likely to develop type 2 diabetes following pregnancy." Pg.1